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Guy de Maupassant
Henri René Albert''' Guy de Maupassant''' (5 August 1850 – 6 July 1893) was a popular French writer, considered one of the fathers of the modern short story and one of the form's finest exponents. Maupassant was a protégé of Flaubert and his stories are characterized by economy of style and efficient, effortless dénouements(outcomes). Many are set during the Franco-Prussian War of the 1870s, describing the futility of war and the innocent civilians who, caught up in events beyond their control, are permanently changed by their experiences. He wrote some 300 short stories, six novels, three travel books, and one volume of verse. His first published story, "Boule de Suif" ("Ball of Fat", 1880), is often considered his masterpiece. Tossup Questions # In one of this writer's stories, the title moniker was a nickname given to a Prussian commandant that stemmed from a phrase used for sovereign contempt. In another story, the title is a nickname given to members of the courtesan class, one of whom gives herself to an officer before being snubbed by fellow travelers. He also wrote of an item worth five hundred francs that was replaced with one bought for much more. Name this author of "The Necklace." # This man wrote a story in which the protagonist prepares rabbit for characters whose addresses she records. That story of his ends with the title woman setting fire to her own home in order to kill young men. In a story by this author, the protagonist tells the title character "I am not a woman, I am only a strumpet!" before killing him. This man wrote a story in which Rachel rings a church bell after stabbing an arrogant German captain with a cheese knife. Another of his stories ends with Mathilde discovering to her horror that the title object which she borrowed from Madame Forestier was only a cheap imitation. For 10 points, name this French author of "Mademoiselle Fifi" and "The Necklace." # In a short story by this man, an unfortunate man gorges himself on a banquet at the Chateau de Champignet before willingly becoming a prisoner of war. The mayor of a town tries to kill himself by intentionally standing under a falling tree in a story by this author in which that mayor rapes and murders Little Louise Roque. This author of "Walter Schnaff's Adventure" described the democrat (*) Cornudet whistling La Marseillaise on a carriage ride from Rouen to Le Havre after the prostitute Elisabeth Rousset sleeps with a Prussian officer. In one of his best known stories, Mathilde Loisel and her husband struggle to replace the lost title object, which turns out to be a fake. For 10 points, name this French author of "Ball of Fat" and "The Necklace". # In one story by this author, a character shoots out the eyes of the portrait of a woman, upon which he has already drawn a mustache. In another story by this author, a merchant makes a joke about eating a woman out of hunger, as sailors do, but is surprised when that woman offers him a piece of jellied chicken. One of his characters is stabbed through the neck with a cheese knife by a Jewish girl named Rachel. In a story by him, (*) Count de Breville persuades the title prostitute to sleep with a Prussian officer to allow a carriage to continue on to Le Havre. In the ending of the most famous story by this author of "Mademoiselle Fifi", it is revealed that the jewelry Mathilde borrowed and lost was fake. For 10 points, name this French author of "Boule de Suif" and "The Necklace". # In one novel by this author, a lawyer learns about his mother Louise's infidelity and his brother's illegitimate status when Léon Maréchal bequeaths his entire inheritance to one of the title characters. Rachel rings the city bells after stabbing an abusive German soldier in this author's short story "Mademoiselle Fifi." This author of Pierre et Jean wrote about a Prussian officer who detains a group of travelers until the title prostitute agrees to sleep with him, and in another of his works, Mathilde Loisel spends years trying to replace a lost piece of jewelry belonging to Madame Forestier she reveals to have been fake. For 10 points, name this French author of "Ball of Fat" and "The Necklace."